When I started in road Haulage in 1977 I remember visiting the above company that operated from a yard in Lymm,something the owner of the business said at the time has stuck in my mind ever since.Diesel and wages must not be more than 50% of the vehicles earnings and there was a sufficiency to survive.
Cut to yesterday when I visited a well respected firm under good management,they are running modern Scania’s fully freighted all the time,I was shown the fuel figures and irrespective of BHP they all seem to be doing around 6mpg,with fuel at £4.50 per gallon i.e.75p per mile they would need £3.00 p mile.There is more chance of flying to the moon.
So 40 years later where have we got to,we are like the country in big trouble and what next.
The problem is I Have been telling the same story for the past 40 years,it’s just the debt is never going down .
Im sure T/N member “Albion” says he applies the same rule of thumb with regard to the diesel + wages costing.
There was another post a while ago from another long time O/D who uses the rule that the cost of the round trip fuel used, should not be more than 30% of the total job price.
bullitt:
Im sure T/N member “Albion” says she applies the same rule of thumb with regard to the diesel + wages costing.
There was another post a while ago from another long time O/D who uses the rule that the cost of the round trip fuel used, should not be more than 30% of the total job price.
bullitt:
Im sure T/N member “Albion” says she applies the same rule of thumb with regard to the diesel + wages costing.
There was another post a while ago from another long time O/D who uses the rule that the cost of the round trip fuel used, should not be more than 30% of the total job price.
Quite alright Bullitt, be a bit worried if we met face to face and you called me he tho
And I do say that! nsmith does some fine figure working out and much respect to him for the effort he puts in, but it’s true, if you stick (close) to that, you don’t have to spend your life on spreadsheets. Doesn’t always happen, but I try to work that way. I’m lucky that I have a customer that still views us as part of the operation, rather than an inconvenience. There’s indications that with new management fresh out of uni with their shiny MBAs that things will change. Hope to be out of it by then.
bullitt:
Im sure T/N member “Albion” says he applies the same rule of thumb with regard to the diesel + wages costing.
There was another post a while ago from another long time O/D who uses the rule that the cost of the round trip fuel used, should not be more than 30% of the total job price.
I think it was probably myself who posted re. fuel cost as a percentage of job price.
I’ve always aimed for 33% , and it works well for me. However, I do a relatively low mileage, around 80,000km annually, most of which is on tough territory.
If one were doing much higher mileages and on better roads , then the fuel as a percentage could be allowed to go up quite a bit, as the fixed costs would then represent a smaller percentage of the overall operating costs.
I have some jobs where the fuel is as low as25% of the job rate, but even then I don’t think I have ever managed to get to a position where the combined cost of fuel and wages is as low as 50%.
Happy new year bud, no need at all for apologies.
I’m always pleasantly surprised that people actually read and remember the stuff I post on here.
I’m 64 at the end of this month , still on flats, struggling with the modern world and arthritis just about everywhere, but do you know what, when I have to give up, I’m really going to miss it. I’ve been on my own, (OD) since 1978. It’s given me a decent and reliable living over that time and I’ve met a lot of fine people and remarkable characters that I would never have met working in an office.
I read, sadly, so much negativity on here regarding life and work in transport, and I know it can be hard, but if you’re young, able and keen, get stuck in and have a go, after all, E Stobart was just afarmers
